{"id":35189,"date":"2024-01-24T13:48:42","date_gmt":"2024-01-24T21:48:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=35189"},"modified":"2024-01-24T13:48:42","modified_gmt":"2024-01-24T21:48:42","slug":"reflections-on-transpersonal-leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/reflections-on-transpersonal-leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"Reflections on Transpersonal Leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cLeaders need to have complex cognitive structures so that they can adapt to, accommodate, and transcend challenging circumstances. On the one hand, they need strong egos to tolerate the tension of standing alone and not being easily overwhelmed. On the other, they need to be sensitive to their inner drives and ego defenses and be able to not let these absorb their energies or distract them from the work at hand.\u201d [1]<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As I consider this statement written by author Annabel Beerel in the book <\/span>Rethinking Leadership <\/span><\/i>various situations come to mind, from my workplace, where complex cognitive structures have been developed with time, transforming my self-awareness, conscious and unconscious reactions to situations.\u00a0 <\/span>In the book, <\/span>Spellbound,<\/span><\/i> Dr. Daniel Lieberman discusses the ability of the unconscious to exert a surprising amount of control over our behavior, noting that not everything that comes from the conscious is good, but it\u2019s wonderful when the goals of the unconscious align with those of the ego. [2]\u00a0 Near the beginning of the book, Lieberman, points out different areas of the brain, their function and their cooperation with one another.\u00a0 For example, he notes that the prefrontal cortex is larger in humans than in any other animal. The prefrontal cortex plays an important role in planning long-term goals, making decisions, and keeping social behavior within acceptable limits. Cognitive functioning is complex and is developed through a variety of means including hardship.\u00a0 I appreciate the words from Hebrews 12:7-11,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cEndure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their fathers?\u00a0 If you are not disciplined \u2013 and everyone undergoes discipline \u2013 then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.\u00a0 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

One particular situation that comes to mind, hot off the \u201c______\u201d (not sure what. . . press?) is the recent onboarding of a new staff member.\u00a0 I recently interviewed and the district hired a Reading Specialist to support our students needing Tier 2 Reading Intervention support within our M.T.S.S. model. <\/span>A multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) is a proactive and preventative framework that integrates data and instruction to maximize student achievement and support students social, emotional, and behavioral needs from an assets-based or strengths-based perspective.\u00a0 Onboarding a new staff member is an ongoing process that requires time, coaching, encouragement, resourcing, and attentive consideration of the individual’s understanding and competency level.\u00a0 AND I LOVE IT!!!!! \u00a0 However, any leader knows the glory and struggle of onboarding new staff, coupled with the internal desire to keep the \u201cpiles\u201d away (maybe that\u2019s just me) and get it all done in a timely manner.\u00a0 The transpersonal moment in my leadership for me is when Holy Spirit helps me set my agenda aside, replacing my \u201cwhat\u2019s in it for me\u201d motivations and replaces those thoughts with \u201cwhat\u2019s in it for the kingdom\u201d mindset.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was intrigued by Dr. Beerel\u2019s chapter on Transpersonal Leadership.\u00a0 She defines transpersonal leadership as a type of leadership that focuses on the ability to transcend the ego and thus lead with greater insight and wisdom by not being held hostage to the ego\u2019s needs and defenses. [3]\u00a0 Beerel identifies several layers of awareness, from the highest level being total awareness to attention-awareness to the subliminal and unconscious levels, with consciousness being one of the levels. <\/span>\u00a0Most adults naturally and healthily aspire to pursue alternative self-experiences as they navigate the journey toward greater personal integration and growth, facilitating the expansion of their identity.\u00a0 This pursuit develops, matures, and transforms into a more relational, greater awareness and appreciation for the totality of life, as well as fostering wisdom and an expanded consciousness. [4]\u00a0 <\/span>Lieberman states, \u201cseeing the world through the eyes of our hidden fellow travelers (referring to our ego, conscious\/unconscious) is an essential step in attaining our full human potential, but it is not for the faint of heart. [5]<\/span><\/p>\n

As I read further with the chapter, I couldn\u2019t help but affirm that becoming a transpersonal Christian leader requires an intentional, conscious, and active commitment to develop one\u2019s awareness, but not just their awareness of the self, but their awareness of the One and the One\u2019s presence within.\u00a0 As Jules Glanzer put it in the book, <\/span>The Sound of Leadership:\u00a0 Kingdom Notes to Fine Tune Your Life and Influence,<\/span><\/i> \u201cMission, vision, and values for Kingdom-seeking, God-honoring, biblically-rooted leadership involves clarifying the mission, identifying a preferred future that comes from hearing the Voice of One and having the courage to take the action the Voice is calling you to take.\u201d [6] Even in the process of discerning the voice and reactions of the ego and unconscious in any given situation in the workplace, leaders must decide whose voice to listen to.<\/span>\u00a0 According to Beerel, meditation is frequently characterized as the royal road to transpersonal experiences, given its ability to enhance our capacity for these states beyond the personal self. [7]\u00a0 I would add that not only meditation, but prayer, spiritual disciplines, silence & solitude, creativity\/recreation, Sabbath, and other spiritual practices are all a part of becoming transpersonal and realizing the full self made in the Image of God.<\/span><\/p>\n

[1] Annabel Beerel, <\/span>Rethinking Leadership<\/span><\/i>, 1st edition (London; New York: Routledge,\u00a0<\/span>2021), 232.<\/span><\/p>\n

[2] <\/span>Daniel Lieberman, <\/span>Spell Bound:\u00a0 Modern Science, Ancient Magic, and the Hidden Potential\u00a0<\/span><\/i>of the Unconscious Mind<\/span><\/i> (Dallas, TX:\u00a0 BenBella Books, 2022), 16.<\/span><\/p>\n

[3] Beerel, 232.<\/span><\/p>\n

[4] Ibid, 232.<\/span><\/p>\n

[5] Lieberman, 16.<\/span><\/p>\n

[6] Jules Glanzer, <\/span>The Sound of Leadership: Kingdom Notes to Fine Tune Your Life and\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Influence<\/span><\/i> (Jules Glanzer: 2023), 24.<\/span><\/p>\n

[7] <\/span>Beerel, 236.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cLeaders need to have complex cognitive structures so that they can adapt to, accommodate, and transcend challenging circumstances. On the one hand, they need strong egos to tolerate the tension of standing alone and not being easily overwhelmed. On the other, they need to be sensitive to their inner drives and ego defenses and be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":168,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2310],"tags":[2977,2489],"class_list":["post-35189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-doctor-of-leadership-3","tag-beerel","tag-dlgp02","cohort-dlgp02"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35189"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35189\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35190,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35189\/revisions\/35190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}